Years back, some may remember, many clone diets of Atkins used to appear very regularly. One was The Drinking Man's Diet, which was basically Atkins with extra wine. Another was The Wine Lover's Diet - again, Atkins with extra wine.
And so on, and so on. Of course if you can have pate and wine and other treats you are not going to lose the way you would on a VLCD. Sometimes I get annoyed at the damage some people suffer trying these TFR plans then finding that they just cannot stick to them.
So they try the next logical alternative - low carb with regular food. But because you can eat this yummy food you don't generally lose 11 pounds in your first week unless you are very heavy to start with, and/or have only just started low-carbing after eating a diet crammed with carbs. They get furiously impatient with Atkins, chuck it all in and go back to the VLCD. Then to SW. Then to WW. Then back to Atkins. Then back to the VLCD. Then to SW...
I truly believe from my own experience and that of countless others - for maintenance, alone, Atkins cannot be beaten. For weight loss too, if living on foodpacks and bars and water just doesn't work for you. But we all need to learn patience. And true acceptance of ourselves, of scientific body realities, and of the importance of our emotional and psychological health. These things are only understood over time - not overnight or in a matter of weeks.
Above all we need to learn to eat without being overcome with crushing guilt. That, for me, was the really hard part.